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Carbohydrates in food

The carbohydrate in 194 everyday foods, per 100 g, from the Swiss Food Composition Database.

All foods by group

In grams of carbohydrate per 100 g.

Fresh fruit

Most fresh fruit gives between 5 and 20 g of carbohydrate per 100 g, mostly as natural sugars.

Dried fruit and applesauce

Drying removes water: 55 to 73 g of carbohydrate per 100 g. Applesauce has about 12 g, or 20 g when sweetened.

Vegetables

Most vegetables contain less than 5 g of carbohydrate per 100 g. Carrots, peas, sweetcorn and beetroot contain more.

Potatoes

Potatoes provide mainly starch: about 13 to 21 g of carbohydrate per 100 g, boiled, steamed or baked.

Pasta, rice and grains

Pasta, rice and grains are rich in starch. The values differ a lot between dry and cooked.

Pulses

Lentils, chickpeas and beans combine starch, fibre and protein. Cooked, they contain about 13 to 21 g of carbohydrate per 100 g.

Bread

Bread usually contains 38 to 52 g of carbohydrate per 100 g, almost all of it starch.

Breakfast and cereals

Oats, muesli and cereals are dry: 50 to 86 g of carbohydrate per 100 g. Prepared with milk, the value per 100 g drops a lot.

Milk, yogurt and plant drinks

Milk and plain yogurt contain about 4 to 5 g of carbohydrate per 100 g, as lactose. Plant drinks vary a lot.

Sugars, spreads and sauces

Sugars, syrups and jams are almost entirely carbohydrate. Sauces and spreads vary more.

Chocolate and sweets

Chocolate and sweets usually contain more than 50 g of carbohydrate per 100 g, mostly sugars.

Cakes and biscuits

Cakes, biscuits and pastries combine flour and sugar: from about 20 g for an apple tart to 75 g for Basler Läckerli.

Desserts and ice cream

Milk desserts and ice creams usually contain 18 to 32 g of carbohydrate per 100 g.

Drinks

Soft drinks, iced teas and fruit juices usually contain 7 to 18 g of carbohydrate per 100 ml, almost all sugars.

Snacks and nuts

Crisps, popcorn and pretzels contain 49 to 74 g of carbohydrate per 100 g. Nuts and almonds contain much less.

Dishes and meals

Prepared dishes range from about 6 g of carbohydrate per 100 g (tomato soup) to 30 g (pizza). It all depends on the recipe.

Cooked sides

From most to least, in grams of carbohydrate per 100 g.

How to read these values

Per 100 g
For 100 g of the part you eat (no peel, stone or bone), in the state shown. Cooked pasta has taken up water: about 31 g of carbohydrate instead of 70 g dry. Weigh the food in the same state.
10 g or 12 g of carbs
Each page shows the weight that gives 10 g of carbs and the weight that gives 12 g (one bread unit, BE). Use the unit your care team taught you.
Available carbohydrate
The carbohydrate the body digests and absorbs, mainly sugars and starch. Together they do not always match the total exactly (rounding, other carbohydrates).
Sugars
Glucose, fructose, sucrose or lactose: found in fruit, milk and sweetened foods.
Starch
The energy store of grains, potatoes and pulses. Digestion breaks it down into glucose.
Fibre
It is not digested like other carbohydrates and is not included in the available carbohydrate of this database.

The values come unchanged from the Swiss Food Composition Database (version 7.1) by the FSVO. The weights for 10 g or 12 g and the portions are simple calculations. For dishes, values are for a standard recipe. View the database on naehrwertdaten.ch

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For information only

This does not replace the advice of your doctor or diabetes care team.